


Piece By Piece

by peanatbutterjelly



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Doyoung is a worrywart, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotions, Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Friendship/Love, How Do I Tag, Implied Relationships, JaeDo, Light Angst, M/M, Romance, blink and you might miss it, dojae, jaehyun is a good boyfriend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-17
Packaged: 2021-02-07 19:35:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21463399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peanatbutterjelly/pseuds/peanatbutterjelly
Summary: NCT 127 has a mere five days left before they embark on their world tour, something which most of them have dreamt about for the longest time. However, as much as the practices are going well, or at least according to the team of directors and the staff, Doyoung worries, thinking of all the wildest and worst possibilities, but Jaehyun notices and makes it all better for his Bunny Prince.
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Comments: 7
Kudos: 95





	Piece By Piece

**Author's Note:**

> First thing's first, wow, it has been long since I posted anything really and frankly, it feels good to be back, though I'm not sure when I would be back with another work again. However, I had just received my Neo City in Seoul Live Album yesterday and was looking through the notes that the members wrote to each other, and I was simply inspired to write something for my favourite OTP, Dojae (or Jaedo, whichever you prefer). Do note that I did write this in quite a short period so apologies in advance if there are any mistakes omg. Nevertheless, I hope you guys like this as much as I enjoyed writing it! ^^ See you guys in the comment section, or feel free to hit me up on my Twitter (https://twitter.com/natty_cookies) or CC (https://curiouscat.me/peanat_crumbles) hehe! <3 Have a pleasant day ahead and happy reading!

Despite the immense popularity of NCT 127 in which they raked in millions of views with every music video they released, broke every single record they made for themselves and entered into a variety of iTunes and Billboard charts, Doyoung still could not come to terms with the fact that they were going to be embarking on a world tour. 

Don’t get him wrong, it was one of his biggest dreams that he had ever wanted to achieve as an artiste in the ever-competitive Korean Pop industry, and he could not be prouder and more satisfied that his dreams were going to be actualised. However, he could not help but worry, thinking of the wildest (and worst) incidents that could possibly happen. 

He was known to be a worrywart by his groupmates, and according to Jaehyun, his boyfriend, it was both a strength and a weakness — one could always rely on him when things went unexpectedly wrong, but he would concurrently cause himself unnecessary stress and it was evident in the way he would lose sleep, tossing and turning in bed, only to resort to staring at the ceiling until the wee hours of the morning, or bite his fingernails. He was only relieved of this worry when the situation was sure to be solved. In fact, it’s probably safe to say he worries 95% of the time as he constantly looks out for others and concerns over his own performance at the same time too. 

This was no different. 

The group had 5 days until the commencement of their world tour and he simply did not understand how the rest of his groupmates could be so calm and relaxed about it. For the past few days, he had been the one trying to get their focus back on the practice and looked on disapprovingly whenever they got distracted. Even Taeyong, to his utmost surprise, joined in the fun once in a while, and Doyoung could not help but feel as if there were still so many things to work on — cleaning of their already sharp and perfect dance moves, the occasional off-tunes of their melodious singing… You name it, Doyoung probably thought of it, and even if everything looked perfect according to the concert director and the staff members, he still thought there must have been a flaw they missed out. His teammates told him to let loose, live a little, but Doyoung only sighed and shrugged his shoulders. 

It was 2am now and it was time for them to go back to the dorm for a good sleep, before heading back to the basketball court they rented to repeat the whole cycle all over again. His throat was already starting to feel raw (he would need to remember to take his Propolis pills later), his muscles ached and his eyelids were heavy, but his mind was more than active. For the rest of the members, they were as good as being knocked out cold the moment their heads came into contact with the headrest of the seats, some even letting out light snores. 

Heck, even their manager has passed out, head lolling from side to side as the car moved, but here Doyoung was, staring out the window and letting his mind run wild. 

_ Did we do well today? No, don’t think so. I was a quarter beat late for Regular, froze up for Chain during the floorwork, my notes were flat at some point for No Longer and Back 2 U… What else went wrong… Oh, I definitely looked like a log dancing with the mic for Heartbreaker, how does everyone look so normal — _

And his mind ran on. He watched the street lights become streaks as the car zoomed past the now empty streets of Apgujeong and he had half a mind to wind down the window for fresh air, hoping it would clear his thoughts, but that would definitely wake everyone up so he simply crossed his arms and attempted to close his eyes, but to no avail. Jaehyun noticed this from the corner of his eye as they sat together in the car, and he stretched out his sore arm to hold onto Doyoung’s cold hands before falling back asleep, his hold not getting any looser. 

Back at the dorm, Doyoung’s mind and body did not seem to agree on one thing. His body was practically crying for him to head straight to bed without a shower, but the logical part of his mind told him that would be gross and unhygienic. Hence, as much as it hurt, he was the first to push his way through the entrance of the dorm and grabbed the first clothes he saw when he opened the closet he shared with Mark. After that, he trudged to the shower, not saying a word, and locked the door behind him. 

The members were undoubtedly concerned and shared worried glances, but they were way too tired to stay up any longer and headed back to their respective rooms for a good night’s rest. Taeyong hesitated going back into his room, however, wondering whether he should reassure Doyoung through the door or leave him be. He did not want to show it, but by the way he was pacing up and down within the vicinity of the locked bathroom door, it did not take a genius to find out what he wanted to do.

“Hyung, I think you should go and rest. You’ve had a long day and it’s going to be the same tomorrow.” Jaehyun spoke, snapping Taeyong out of his reverie and cutting through the pin-drop silence. 

”But he’s not okay Jae. Can’t you tell?” He responded with a hushed voice, afraid Doyoung might hear him despite the fact that the shower was on, “How can I go to sleep knowing that one of my members is going through such turmoil? His eyebags have gotten worse, he’s losing weight…”

“I’ll keep watch.” 

“Are you sure?”

“Hyung, at the end of the day, you are our leader, the cornerstone of the band. If you are not well rested, it’s going to affect us all and besides, you’ve done a lot for us today in keeping the spirit up, so it’s time you got your rest. He’s my boyfriend anyway too, so I’ll keep an eye on him to make sure he’s doing okay. Now, shoo.” 

And with that, Taeyong let out a small chuckle and headed back to the room he shared with Johnny, not forgetting to remind Jaehyun not to stay up too late. Nevertheless, Jaehyun knew that Doyoung was going to take a while, like he always did when he was stressed, and as much as Jaehyun tried to fight through the fatigue, his body has ultimately given in and he fell into a slumber on the couch of their living room. 

********

Doyoung had spent a good 45 minutes in a warmer than average shower. On most days, he was usually out in less than 20 minutes, and that included the time taken to actually take a shower, wash his face and brush his teeth, but it was clearly an exception today. The reason why he took so long was probably because he spent most of the time in the shower staring intently at the off-white tiles, going through the mistakes he made and ensured that he kept them well in his mind for tomorrow’s practice. 

Soon, he realised that the glass around the shower cubicle had already been completely fogged up, and so was the mirror. In fact, even the bathroom seemed to have been filled with "smoke", and Doyoung took that as his cue to step out because the last thing he wanted was to fall sick before the concert. Taking one last look at his dull and somewhat sunken face, he walked out with a pair of fluffy pyjamas that Jaehyun had bought for him in Japan and a cute hairband on his head, making it look as if he had bunny ears, which the fans and the band told him he greatly resembled them anyway. 

He noticed that Jaehyun was fast asleep on the couch and he would have woken the latter up, but he looked so peaceful that Doyoung did not want to ruin his beauty sleep. And so he proceeded back to his room, surprised to find that the lights were still on, and it was probably because of Mark, who always wanted to keep tabs on his activities in his black Leuchtturm1917 planner that Doyoung had bought for him last Christmas. Boy was he right, as he found Mark with the open journal atop his head and a pen on the floor, showing that Mark had indeed fallen into a deep sleep, and his limbs were sprawled like a starfish on his bed. Doyoung could not help but coo at the cuteness of the younger and he proceeded to help the latter settle into bed by first, removing the diary and glasses to put it on the desk, followed by picking up the pen off the floor and finally, adjust Mark’s limbs so that he can be tucked in comfortably.

Mark did not move an inch as Doyoung adjusted the way he slept, as he wanted to make sure that the younger did not wake up with an unnecessarily sore body the next day, and this simply indicated that Mark was as good as being dead to the world and probably finding relaxation in dreamland. On the contrary, Doyoung found himself staring at the ceiling and into the abyss after he turned the lights off. The shower was supposed to help him relax and he had hopes that it would lull him to sleep a lot easier, but it did not seem to be the case. And once again, he ended up tossing and turning, before kicking off the blanket in frustration after a good 15 minutes and headed out of his room to get some warm water from the kitchen. 

He decided to go to the balcony with his mug to get the fresh air he so desperately needed. With the concert coming up, it was safe to say all of them did not have much contact with the outside world, and the feeling of being strictly confined within four walls was clearly taking its toll on Doyoung. He took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly, repeating this for at least 30 seconds before he actually felt the tension in his shoulders dissipate bit by bit. The cold air caressed his face as he simply stood in silence to admire the beautiful horizon, of which some of the city’s lights were still on to keep the area relatively well lit. He also paid attention to the low humming of the wind, the sound of crickets chirping and the rustling of the leaves of the trees, and he wondered why he never thought of doing this earlier, given how much he had found himself getting more and more relaxed. 

The moment of solitude soon came to an end when he felt a fluffy blanket wrap around his shoulders, followed by a pair of strong and robust arms settling around his waist, and finally Doyoung felt the feeling of someone’s chin resting on his shoulder. He did not need to turn around to know who it was, knowing full well that it was just his concerned boyfriend, Jung Jaehyun. 

They stood in silence, both looking up to admire the twinkling stars in the clear sky, until Jaehyun spoke, voice soothing and gentle, “Penny for your thoughts?” 

For some reason, Jaehyun’s actions stirred Doyoung’s emotions and soon, he felt the tears well up in his eyes. He closed them, attempting to keep them in, but it did not take long before one tear rolling down his cheek turned into two, and soon, they just cascaded down with almost no sign of stopping. He wiped them away with his fluffy pyjama sleeves, not wanting to appear so vulnerable in front of his already worried boyfriend, but Jaehyun already knew, who turned Doyoung’s whole body around and wrapped him in a warm hug. The gesture only made Doyoung cry more, tears already leaving a wet spot on Jaehyun’s white hoodie, but the latter did not seem to bother as one hand held onto the back Doyoung’s head while the other rubbed smooth circles into his back. 

Doyoung cried and cried, until he felt like he had no more tears left. His eyes were probably extremely puffy and his nose red, meaning that he probably looked like a mess, especially when he was standing right in the arms of the Adonis of the group. Sometimes, he never knew why Jaehyun chose him to be his significant other. Of all the people he had the choice to pick, he chose someone who was almost the complete opposite of him, especially in terms of the physical department, but Jaehyun always made it a point to reassure him time and time again that he would not have it any other way. 

Once Jaehyun knew that Doyoung had genuinely calmed down quite a fair bit, he brought Doyoung to one of the two outdoor chairs Johnny had assembled from IKEA and headed inside to prepare two cups of chamomile tea. Once done, he placed one next to Doyoung and the latter took it almost immediately, hoping that the warmth would spread through from his fingertips to his entire being. Perhaps it was not a great idea to be spending so much time outdoors in the breezy night, simply because it would not be too good for his nose and throat (he was a vocalist for goodness sake), but Doyoung needed to feel free for once, and so he continued sitting there with no intention of moving at all. 

“So… what’s wrong bunny?” Jaehyun asked, still in that gentle tone, after taking a sip of tea.

“I’m scared, Jae.”

_ Well, that came out easier than I thought. _

“Of?”

“It’s our first concert in a mere 4 days time now. I’m still messing up here and there, especially for the vocal practices. What if I screw up on the actual day? What would our fans think? I don’t want them to feel that they’re wasting their money and time, not on my account. Not only are the vocal performances screwed, my dancing too, I don’t know what’s wrong… It doesn’t look right.” 

Now, Jaehyun stood from his chair and came face to face with Doyoung as he knelt on one knee. He proceeded to place a hand on Doyoung’s cheek, rubbing it with his thumb, and Doyoung leaned into the touch, earning a comforting smile from Jaehyun. 

“You’ll be fine, bunny. I’m sure of it.”

“How can you be so sure, Jae? How can anyone be so sure?” 

“You’ve worked hard, way more than anyone of us. You keep us focused and inspired by the amount of work and passion you put into ensuring your performance comes out as ‘perfect’. Don’t think none of us has caught you sneaking out of the dorm early in the morning before anyone’s awake, just to revise your dances at the practice rooms, only to somehow come home just before anyone officially catches you in the act.”

“How did you know then?”

“Mark told me while you were taking your nap during lunch. We’re all worried for you Doyoung, so please, take care of yourself and don’t go through this emotional turmoil on your own ever again. We need you standing strong on your own two feet and rest assured that with enough rest and the right mindset, which can only come from that rest, you will do well. We’ll be here with you, I’ll be here with you. Remember that. We’ve missed you and I’ve missed you too, so please, come back to us, will you?”

That struck a chord in Doyoung and tears felt like they were going to stream down his face again, the only difference being the fact that Jaehyun was ready to kiss them all away. He left kisses all over Doyoung’s face; his cheeks, forehead, eyes, nose and finally, his lips. Just a gentle one, nothing too heated, they were too tired for that, but it was all Doyoung needed. 

“I’m sorry Jae.” 

“There’s nothing to be sorry for, bunny, don’t worry about it.” 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too.” 

And with that, the two of them headed to Doyoung’s room, simply because it was closer, but they had also taken note of the fact that Mark was no longer there and was most likely cuddled up with Haechan in the neighbouring room. So they made their way to Doyoung's bed and once they had settled in, Jaehyun wrapped his arms around Doyoung's form while the latter rested his head on the former’s chest. 

Doyoung closed his eyes and sleep was taking over him almost immediately as he listened to Jaehyun’s steady heartbeat and before his mind officially went to dreamland, he felt Jaehyun plant one long kiss on his forehead and heard the words, “Sleep tight, bunny.”. 

And Doyoung did, ready to take on the practice again tomorrow morning with a newfound spirit and purpose. 

_ To Jaehyun: _

_ Seeing you do well and trying your best throughout the concert provided a good influence for all of us. Thank you for providing me with a good sense of motivation, which prevented me from falling apart in times when it was easy to do so. _

**Author's Note:**

> To those who have made it up till this point, thank you so much for the support and for sticking through a relatively rusty piece of work I must say. Feel free to reach me through Twitter (@natty_cookies) or even my CCs (@peanat_crumbles) for anything really! <3 Have a great day ahead and I will see you guys in my next work!


End file.
